Ten Reasons to Try Safari 3.1

March 18, 2008 at 2:02 pm · in General · Comments

Safari 3.1 is out. I’ve been using Safari 3.x as my default Web browser for the past few weeks, and aside from a few client quirks (I’m not necessarily thrilled about its tab or window management) it’s been working quite well. In fact, so well that I have no issue in recommending that regular folks use it as their default Web browser… on Windows or Mac OS X.

It’s Fast. Very fast. Very, very, very fast.
No Toolbars. Some might find this a reason not to like Safari, but it’s one of the reasons I love it. The UI is uncluttered - and if my dad used it as his default browser, I wouldn’t have to worry about him installing 5x useless toolbars. Sorry, but I believe the Web browser toolbar is well past its prime.
Compatibility. I’ve only been on a few Web sites that did not work well in Safari, and that’s largely because the Web development team made it impossible to do (not because WebKit is a slouch).
Password Management. I love that I DON’T have to strike a key combo or click a field to AutoFill it before my stored login credentials show up - they just show up automatically like I’d expect them to. Moreover, I can manage all my passwords easily through Keychain.
Made to Help Undo Mistakes. The “Reopen All Windows from Last Session” feature is something that all browsers should come with. No doubt.
URL Path Navigation. Let’s say you’re viewing this particular article on the Web (the permalink for it, at least). In Safari, you can right-click the title in the Title Bar of the window and navigate up through the path on my Web site. Try it - you’ll wonder how you ever got along without it, or previously had to rely on the Google toolbar to give that feature to you in Firefox or IE.
Perfect Amount of Plugins. I’ve only had a few issues with pages that require additional software to run properly (related to Web developers believing that Flip4Mac is the only way for OS X users to view Windows Media files, when in fact we can use either VLC or mplayer). Silverlight works well, Rhapsody works well, and I can watch all episodes of Lost as well as anybody else. I don’t feel I’m missing anything.
Web Inspector. I love this tool. It comes with Safari, and will let you know exactly what might be wrong with a Web page. So, instead of telling someone that “something” is broken and telling them to fix it, you can tell them EXACTLY what’s broken. It’s an amazing Web development tool to boot. Check out the “Network” option in it to see how long it took for EACH PAGE ELEMENT to load. Geeky awesome!!!
History Management. I’m a visual learner, and I most appreciate that Safari shows you a site’s favicon next to the page’s title in History. So much easier to navigate - especially when you know the site’s favicon over anything else.
Search Results SnapBack. Let’s say you click on a result in your default search engine and navigate 20 pages deep into it. You can instantly snap back to your original query by tapping a key combo. Genius.

In terms of JavaScript performance, you just can’t beat Safari or WebKit on any platform - and in a day and age where every other Web site is AJAX’ed out the wazoo, JS perf is paramount.

Firefox 3 is going to give Safari a run for its money - even though I don’t think it’ll ever run half as fast as Safari does (IMHO). The good news is that you can have more than one Web browser on your system at one time, and if you’ve been curious about Safari… there’s no time like the present to try it. It’s available for free for either Windows or Mac OS X. Unless you’re on Linux, you have no excuses (even then, I’d suggest downloading the latest stable build of the core from WebKit.org).

What Web browser do you use, and why? Have you tried Safari before now - did you like it? Am I off my rocker to recommend it to tech neophytes and power users alike?

web browser, web standards

I would also recommend reading:

Do You Have any Thoughts?

Kyle - March 18, 2008 @ 2:05 pm

Sweet!!! i am going to go download it now

w0z - March 18, 2008 @ 2:05 pm

Very helpful and made me switch!

DavidNels - March 18, 2008 @ 2:05 pm

I used Internet Explorer all the way up to a year ago. IE7 promised better browsing but resulted in pure fluff. I switched to Firefox and have been happily using it since. I am downloading Safari now on your recommendation to see how I like it.

Opera > IE
Firefox > Opera
Safari > Firefox?

David

Nathan - March 18, 2008 @ 2:06 pm

My own personal reason, which feeds the geek in me: The ability to try the nightly webkit builds, which are approaching 100% standards compliance.

Of course, the ability to try out new features that aren’t available to the public is 90% of the reason I play with beta and pre-release software in the first place. Hence the reason I’m viewing this through FF 3 Beta 4 (which is phenomenally fast compared to FF2 and below).

B33T - March 18, 2008 @ 2:06 pm

well i use firefox, because i trust them, and i believe security problems only occur if the user is stupid or un-computer savvy. so i just use firefox its quick, simple and expandable, its never had any problems so without a good reason i wont switch.
however it sounds like a good browser good luck with it.

Justin - March 18, 2008 @ 2:06 pm

I’ve only used it few times before, but i really loved it because it’s faster then firefox, and all of that above is reason you should give it to try..

JohnnyWishBone - March 18, 2008 @ 2:07 pm

I tried it this morning. I still like my Firefox and all the addons I use. Maybe someday Safari will have the addons I use.

Christian - March 18, 2008 @ 2:07 pm

One of my favorites out of those reasons is the restore session the password management sounds nice too and I like fast hehehehe.

timmyhk - March 18, 2008 @ 2:08 pm

I use both Safari and Firefox

Firefox sometimes cannot decode the languages, and oddly Safari can, so Safari works for me in that way. Since, Firefox 2.0.12 is my Primary. I use FF. But overall though, i live FireFox, b/c that is what i used for my WIndows 2000 machine. Firefox, help ease my switch

wCurtis - March 18, 2008 @ 2:08 pm

Even though I am on WIndows, I have been a strong Firefox user up intill anout a monthj ago I download and installed Safari and I love it. It is the fastest web browser i have ever had. I blogged about it here is the linkhttp://curtisrubeck.blogspot.com/2008/03/best-web-browser.html

Amazenyou - March 18, 2008 @ 2:08 pm

Great list, i’m running IE7 right now and, if I had a better machine, i’de give Safari a try just from reading this blog. Some amazing features there.

Roy Kunsky - March 18, 2008 @ 2:09 pm

Have been using Safari for PC since it was released. Love using it for everyday surfing and have only hit a couple of pages where it says the browser is not supported (Yahoo Mail). The interface is clean and uncluttered without button or toolbar death. I still require IE for security (Common Access Card) functions but having to keep two browsers installed is worth the speed gains under Safari. I would recommend it to anyone and have repeatedly. Give it try!

emil - March 18, 2008 @ 2:11 pm

Have you tried the Inquisitor plug? It makes it far more easier to find stuff than using the searchbar in firefox or any browser

Steeltwist - March 18, 2008 @ 2:11 pm

I tried safari for windows in its last beta stage. The speed was great, far faster than firefox. The only thing that is stopping me from using it now as a main browser is the addons. Firefox has so many useful addons that safari doesnt such as adblock plus, which IMO, is a must. I’ll see how firefox 3 works out and decide if i should switch for good. I’m downloading safari as we speak though just to have it.

Canadaguy - March 18, 2008 @ 2:12 pm

I think that safari is great. I’m a new user of it and from the start i can say in the least that i am very very impressed. The simplicity of it is one of the features i like best. So far the little time i’ve used it already has converted me from a long time IE fan. I like the tab feature that it’s only a double click away. It has taken the the plugins that i’ve thrown at it so far, and the speed is amazing. I thought that IE was good and became charmed when Microsoft added tabbed browsing, but seeing that Safari has this plus other features that i’ve only scratched the surface of so far, i think i’m going to stick with it.

John - March 18, 2008 @ 2:13 pm

Is safari on windows any better now? Last I tried it it wasn’t exactly anything to write home about. However, its my default on my Mac :)

Griff - March 18, 2008 @ 2:14 pm

Lets see…

1. Firefox is pretty fast.

2. Personal taste is not a valid reason. I like having a USEFUL toolbar. I keep my most useful shortcuts and RSS feeds on it.

3. Meh… never had much trouble with combatibility on Firefox. Just lockergnome (BETA) lol

4. Password Management? Got it! Autofill? Got it? Dont have to click anything? Got it.

5. Firefox has a “Restore Season” feature as well. I use it all the time.

6. URL Path Navigation? Ok… that does sound cool…

7. Plugins work great in Firefox in my opinion. The only one that gives me any lip is Apple Quicktime. No trouble with the others.

8. While its not built in… Firefox has an Add-On that lets you edit all sorts of codee… forget whats it called though.

9. Favicon is history? Ok, firefox could use that.

10. Snapback, also could be quite useful in Firefox.

Let me add, all of the wonderful plugins that are available for firefox. Its because of these i enjoy using Firefox. I tried installing Safari, but every time i try to launch it, it crashes. (Im on XP mind you.) A tools not that useful if it crashes all the time…

Mike_D - March 18, 2008 @ 2:14 pm

Safari is just too ugly for me to use on Windows, it seems like it doesn’t know whether it wants to be a Mac app or a Windows app. It may be just me and my slow internet connection but I don’t see a huge speed increase between Firefox(my default browser) and Safari. I doubt I could switch to Safari because I would miss my extensions and skins. I like to be able to personalize my stuff to suit me. Safari on OS X isn’t that bad but I don’t use it on my Mac either because of extensions.

hanshaw - March 18, 2008 @ 2:14 pm

I just downloaded Safari for Windows an hour ago. I usually use firefox, but I’d like for my iPhone to sync my bookmarks automatically with my desktop browser. So, I’m giving Safari a shot. So far, I’m liking it. The facts that it’s fast and has a clean interface is about all I’ve learned so far.

Hopefully, I’ll be pleased after a few days of use.

marmot - March 18, 2008 @ 2:16 pm

Nice list and I agree with most of these points. After switching from Win XP to OS X Safari has now become my primary browser over Firefox. I also appreciate its speed and lack of clutter.

I love being able to undock a tab to a new window and the recovery option is very handy. One thing I hated is that I couldn’t auto-close the download window but SafariStand has fixed that little niggle. Inquisitor is a search plugin that I also recommend.

One more thing thats very cool is if you copy text from any other application on the Mac selecting Command-Shift-L auto loads it into Safari and provides Google results for the copied text. While this is probably more of an OS X feature it showcases the advantages of intelligent integration between OS and application.

xox1111 - March 18, 2008 @ 2:16 pm

I currently use Safari and Firefox. Safari is my main browser because it loads most of my webpages and places that I visit. I have only had trouble with a few websites and those websites can be opened in firefox. Flip4mac is great for viewing windows media content in safari and just works. Safari gives me all I need and the only other reason I use firefox is if I am running a dedicated process that I don’t want to crash incase that happens while have many windows open in Firefox. I used to use a browser called Shiira based on webkit but It fell behind and with Leopard I stuck with Safari and can’t go back.

Gumami - March 18, 2008 @ 2:19 pm

When I got my Macbook it of course had Safari on it, and I gave it a whirl, but I am so used to the way I have done things with Firefox for so many years that I probably didn’t give it a fair chance. I think I may revisit Safari again and see what happens.

greggScutum - March 18, 2008 @ 2:20 pm

I’m now using Safari as a default browser and I’m very happy that I decided to switch from IE7. IE7 is a complete disaster. Mostly because it is very unstable. I decided not to use Firefox, in spite it is a very good browser, because it is missing some important plugins.

doggo - March 18, 2008 @ 2:22 pm

Amen bruthaaa (ala Desmond).

Initially I was skeptical about Safari, prior to my switch back to the Mac, being a Firefox fan. But I prefer Safari for all the reasons you point out. It even works well on… Vista (in Parallels).

When I’m doing web stuff for work, I usually preview it in Safari, sometimes I forget to check the other browsers, but if it looks good in Safari, it usually looks good in whatever… except IE…

HTF - March 18, 2008 @ 2:22 pm

I’m currently using FF3B4 before that I was using the opera 9.5 beta, both of these are faster than Safari is currently on windows (even 3.1) though all three are fairly close, Firefox being the surprise winner in my benchmarks. The odd part is I have FF kitted out to be exactly like Opera, for the simple reason that Opera is unstable. I do like Safari, its UI is nice and uncluttered and it has all the features you would expect in a modern browser.

So until Safari gives me a reason to change to it I have no reason to change, it was a pain switching to FF from Opera, I do not wish to go through that again unless there is a big enough reason to do so and Safari just does not offer anything unique.

Barry - March 18, 2008 @ 2:23 pm

I currently use a variation of Firefox called Lolifox. It’s basically Firefox 2, but setup for the anime community. I started to make a switch toward Opera in the last few weeks though. I don’t really have a browser that I use consistently though at this time.

Why do I use these? It’s just what I’ve found and they work for me.

There’s just something about Macs that I don’t like. I’ve used Safari before and it turned me off. It’s a completely different browser. I felt locked down. Though that’s how I felt when I first switched to Firefox years ago. It’s just a matter of getting used to the new feel. Exiting normality isn’t always easy.

I’ll definitely give Safari another chance, considering the new release. It seems something finally beat the speed of Opera.

avtraino - March 18, 2008 @ 2:24 pm

OSX: Safari>Opera>Firefox>Camino Windows: Opera>Maxthon and Firefox=Safari

Robert Burgin - March 18, 2008 @ 2:33 pm

Just downloaded it and trying it out I liked it before and if you like it that much I am sure I will be very happy.

RobertBIrish

Snakeyes11 - March 18, 2008 @ 2:34 pm

I have safari for windows. I don’t use it a lot, I have had some issues with it on windows. It crashes a lot. Since I am a soon to be Macintosh switcher I am using it more and more to get used to the feel and look of how it runs so that I am more used to it. Safari does an execellent job of remembering my passwords. I do not have to tell to it either. It just remembers them. I have SO MANY passwords for so many different things, I sometimes get confused and type in the wrong password because I don’t know it. That is why I like it. I don’t like how safari does RSS Feeds. Sadly it needs to be perfected more. Firefox does a better job at it then Safari or Opera.

- Snakeyes11 -

Bstone18 - March 18, 2008 @ 2:46 pm

I have been using safari on windows since the first beta came out. The beta was pretty bad. I did not start to fully use safari until Safari 2. Safari 2 was a lot better but there were a lot of random crashes that happen off and on for no reason. But, safari got better.

In January I move 99% of my computer browsing to Safar for 3 main reasons.

1. Its fast. It loads faster than Firefox and IE.

2. Clean. I love the way it looks and the features.

3. Bookmarks and tabs. This is the most important.

Bookmarking in Firefox was just bad. It did not work. It was not simple or easy to use and I gave up on it. With about 90 links and the folders not working right I could not find the right link to anything. In Safari all my folders are in order and I can just hit the bookmark button select the folder I want to put the link into and click add when I’m ready to add it. When I want to remove a folder or links I just drag to and open space and it’s gone.

With my update to Fios Internet Safari is even faster when browsing on the internet and the crashes have been fixed by Apple.

Like any new browser it takes time to get your hands around it and it has taken some time for me to do that. I am happy I made the move over to safari. I say check it out just to see if you like it or not. It’s not for everyone but it’s a good browser.

Timothyv491 - March 18, 2008 @ 2:47 pm

from what stats show, Javascript runs faster in Firefox 3 Beta 4 then Safari 3.1 does. Only by about a second, but still ;)

John Morton - March 18, 2008 @ 2:48 pm

Web Inspector is such a great tool. It even finds missing resources inside Flash movies. If you want an FLV that seems hidden to other browsers, the Web Inspector will find it for you. Just double click on that particular resource in the Web Inspector window and watch it download. Sweet.

Phalanx - March 18, 2008 @ 2:50 pm

Chris,

I’m excited to try the new Safari. I am personally a firefox guy and really love how clean that is. I noticed when watching the promo video for Safari that they were really bragging it was a “clean interface”. I really do not understand. Have you looked at IE7? You cannot really tell me that that is not a “clean interface”! What is complicated about it?

Another thing that I am concerned about is the customizations of Safari. Firefox is really easy to customize, and I really like that, is Safari just going to be like the rest of apple’s stuff and if you do not like it then its too bad for you?

Well, I’ll go download it. I’m really excited for Firefox 3!!!

Levi Figueira - March 18, 2008 @ 2:55 pm

I was about to switch from FF2 to Safari completely… until I got a hold of FF3b…

The new location bar is absolutely a killer feature for me: the ability to start typing and having it auto-complete from any part on the URL or even the title of the page is a time saver… No more History browsing, etc…

Plus. once del.icio.us gets updated and integrated with Places on FF I don’t think I’ll be able to live without it!

But Safari is REALLY fast… FF3 is not quite as fast… yet! :)
Plus I’ll agree that Safari looks freaking great.. And dang, do I love the Inspector!! =)

I’ll always use both, but my main browser will remain FF3b for the time being! :) As soon as I see the new style of location bar for Safari as in FF, I’ll switch overnight! =)

Steven Hodson - March 18, 2008 @ 3:09 pm

chris .. have you tried it yet as the editor for you blog posts either as original or edited posts?

Every Safari I have tried yet on a WP install has stripped the paragraph tags from posts and this newest one is no different. Now I don’t know if this is just something I am experiencing or is common to WP (or even other ones since he paragraph tag is a common one) but until it is either explained why this is happening or get fixed it is a useless browser for bloggers IMO

lamboman - March 18, 2008 @ 3:19 pm

I just downloaded Safari 3.1 (I had 3 installed already). The speed of it has improved, but it still doesn’t beat FF3 (with the well known tweaks). Better than before, but still nowhere near FF.

Kyle_vdk - March 18, 2008 @ 3:34 pm

I am just now downloading Safari, the reason I did not keep with it last time is that when I scroll clicked a tab, it did not close!

Alex - March 18, 2008 @ 3:39 pm

i think firefox 3 beta 4 has the same things i will never change firefox for anything because it works perfect for windows xp i don’t know about mac osx but for me the FOX rule’s

Bryan Price - March 18, 2008 @ 3:44 pm

And from the screenshot I saw, it still looks like Mac OS.

No thanks!

joelg88 - March 18, 2008 @ 3:53 pm

I love Safari. I use Safari on Vista. Its great and Fast. I love that is a Clean and Uncluttered Browser. I hate Extra Toolbars like Google or Yahoo or whatever else there is. I NEVER add them. Everytime I install a Plugin like a Adobe Flash update I do the Advanced install so that i can Uncheck the Google Toolbar. I like that the Favorites are right there on top and just a Click away. Also that you can Drag them around. I like that the tabs are right there to. Its cool that you can click a Tab and Drag it out of the Bar and make it a Full Window. I’ve never had any Compatibility issues to the Websites that I go to. I never get any pop ups. I’ve only had to install 2 plugins. the Windows Media Player and the Java plugins. Overall i always I think Safari is a great Browser. the only Browsers I use are Safari and IE7. Im not a big Firefox Fan.

Shay - March 18, 2008 @ 4:11 pm

I’ve been testing out the Safari 3.0.x betas for a while now and I like Firefox much better.

Although I like IE7 due to it’s direct Windows integration and also the ActiveX support. I like Firefox much more and plus, you can download themes and extensions–there’s also a ActiveX plugin so you can view those awesome gamgin websites that require ActiveX instead of flash.

After trying the Safari 3.0.x betas I switched back to Firefox, but why? I wanted ActiveX support so I can play some specific games or watch specific videos. But I guess after you listed some of the new features in Safari 3.1 for Windows/Mac, I am willing to try it again.

Once again, another great post about Web Browsers.

FearedBliss - March 18, 2008 @ 4:27 pm

Nice Chris, I been using Safari on Mac OS X ever since I bought my iMac. Which would be around 4 months now. I have to see it is extremely fast but it’s also very unstable. I downloaded and I am currently using 3.1. Hopefully Apple fixed most of these problems.

David - March 18, 2008 @ 4:49 pm

No Safari for me. The keyboard shortcut to move between tabs is one key to many. Three keys to move between tabs-ugh. If there is any easier way I’m all ears.

dualshock - March 18, 2008 @ 4:53 pm

cool! I’m going to download it and see for my self. :)

jr809 - March 18, 2008 @ 4:59 pm

I’m using Firefox and ie7 and i used to use safari and i really didnt like it.

forsalebypwner - March 18, 2008 @ 6:32 pm

I can’t wait to try Safari 3.1, I’m downloading it now thanks to your tips! I have always loved the Mac interface because of it’s simplicity.

Jeremy Bray - March 18, 2008 @ 6:33 pm

While Safari may have a good user experience, its lack of any kind of phishing filters is why I don’t believe its ready for mass audiences. A modern browser needs to have at least some anti-phishing technology. This is the reason that several major companies, including Ebay say that it is not a good browser to use.

Mool212 - March 18, 2008 @ 6:38 pm

If this double posts, sorry, windows crashed while it was processing.

Very good points Chris. However, the thing that keeps me on firefox is its customizability. i like being able to create my own themes that look good and that i can change often. It is also fast. i ran Safari 2, so i might have to try 3 to see if the changes are enough to bump it to my #1 browser.

don - March 18, 2008 @ 6:45 pm

I used to use Safari, but I used Firefox until last year when I returned to Safari. For awhile Firefox seemed better until it become so bloated it was beginning to be a pain. Safari, on the other hand, just works so fast and with so little fuss that I will stay on it for a long time.

I use, from time to time, Flock, Shira (love the interface), Fireox, iCab and Omniweb, but I still come back to Safari. Main reason is still the speed - it blows the others all away!

dephekt - March 18, 2008 @ 6:58 pm

Very nice, I didn’t know Safari was made for Windows I just thought it was an Apple browser. I don’t know if I can stop using Firefox though..been using it for so long now. I’m going to have to be more convinced before using anything else.

Kyle P. - March 18, 2008 @ 7:03 pm

I have been using Safari on the Mac sense Safari 1 and on the PC sense the first beta, it is by far my favorite browser. Please people go out and give it a try, even if you hate it. Oh and don’t knock it until you try it!

Empyrean - March 18, 2008 @ 7:19 pm

Having used most of the popular browsers out there (IE, Firefox, Opera, Maxthon) Safari is quite different from them, the UI, how it handles text (love how the text looks), etc. The speeds are nice, hiccups here and there but its expected of a Beta.
I use Firefox, but I require speed from a browser, and while Firefox delivers, it becomes more inconsistent with age (possibly from addons) so while Safari isn’t my main browser, it certainly is my backup.

LillyEve - March 18, 2008 @ 7:42 pm

I currently use FireFox and have used it for many years now. I only use IE7 to do windows updates, otherwise that browser just collects dust. FF all the way. I love the features it has and the addons I can get to make it just the way I want it plus who doesn’t like tabbed browsing?

I’ve tried Safari before and found it to be quite slow. This was awhile ago however so I might check out the new version and see how it compares. I’ll let you know how that goes.

And thank you for putting out there some of the features Safari has. If you hadn’t mentioned some of them, or even mentioned a new version was out, I probably would never have bothered checking it out again.

warefly - March 18, 2008 @ 8:08 pm

I have been using firefox for over a years now…I loved it and always will. I don`t have a problem something against safari, but i never really wanted to use it unless i was on a mac. Safari and mac to me seems to work better than with windows…..

If it aint broke don`t fix it!! I will however, give it a try.

destructon62 - March 18, 2008 @ 8:19 pm

i personally love safari, for the same reasons, and for the way it uses bookmarks. i have used internet explorer all my life, and it sometimes put bookmarks on sites i did not want bookmarked!!!!!!!!!!!Safari has such a nice waay of keeping track and now i can finally make bookmarks on my command

rushringleader - March 18, 2008 @ 8:22 pm

I’ve gone from Firefox to Opera. I will now bench Opera for a moment to try the new Safari.

kathyleana - March 18, 2008 @ 8:26 pm

I wanted to try Safari because internet explorer and the yahoo browser uses much more resources an they keep crashing.I have been using Safari for a while now an no problems yet even with ustream, just empty the cache occasionaly an it is just fine.I Love It.

txbill - March 18, 2008 @ 8:33 pm

I used the Safari browser for windows for a while just after it came out but eventually went back to Firefox. Safari was very good but it just didn’t have that one “killer” feature that could wean me off Firefox.

Partners in Grime - March 18, 2008 @ 8:46 pm

Mainly Safari … great stability!

cnlevo - March 18, 2008 @ 10:26 pm

Safari would be an amazing browser if it had plug-in/add-on support as extensive as FireFox does. I am a big stickler about the windows i have open because i have so many open and I prefer to have just ONE browser window open at a time. Yes, I know I can “command + click” to make it open in a new tab but i shouldn’t have to. There are three or four plug-ins for Firefox that do such an amazing job. Not to mention all the others like “Foxmarks” and I know that .mac can do this, but a .mac subscription is not free. As well, I like the fact that Firefox allows me to organize my bookmarks better. Mainly adding separators where i want to keep it organized.

I don’t know why people say that there is such a big difference in page rendering (loading speed) compared to firefox. My pages render noticeably faster in Firefox then they do in Safari. I think Safari will be nice within a couple more version and when they get more plug-in support.

I am running a 2008 mac pro (dual xeon 2.8ghz with 16gb ram), so maybe that has something to do with it. Maybe Safari is suited for a not so powerful machine. Either way for now i will not use Safari for more then anything other then watching live steams because I can click the ustream.tv link to open in a popup window and this is the ONE AND ONLY case where i don’t want it to be open in a new tab.

So for now, it’s Firefox %99.9 for me and I don’t see it changing anytime soon. I have been using it since it first came out (even when it had a horrible memory leak, i just LOVE the features it has to offer that NO OTHER browser can match what I could only describe as the ability to customize it)

Katie - March 19, 2008 @ 3:04 am

Mind you, I’m pretty young, so the first browser that I used was Netscape Navigator. From there it went from IE to FF to Flock, which is what I used until Safari 3.0 came out. Really, Flock is of average speed. Safari 3.0 is FAST. It’s sleek, clean, and fast, and that’s worth more to me than all of the add-ons and crazy things that Firefox/Flock can do.

dabrace1984 - March 19, 2008 @ 4:29 am

For those of you, like myself, that are trying to find the “web inspector” feature in Safari 3.1, here is what you do:

1. Open the “Preferences” for Safari 3.1
2. Click on the “Advanced” tab
3. Click on the checkbox for “Show Develop menu in menu bar”

The develop menu gives you a slew of features such as a built in “User Agent” to mimic other browsers if you happen to find a site that isn’t compatible, and “Network Timeline” which is apart of “Web Inspector” and gives you a timeline of how certain aspects of a web page download and what they are?

Safari is gaining some major ground in the web browser category. In my opinion, the only reason Internet Explorer is used at all is because it is included in an operating system. If everyone started out their operating system without a web browser, everyone would choose either Firefox or Safari.

T56 - March 19, 2008 @ 5:20 am

It’s the little things that make Safari 3 such a great browser. The speedboost of 3.1 is nice, but it’s the ability to grab a corner of a textarea box and resize it to whatever size you want for easy text editing, the ‘You have entered text on “Ten Reasons to Try Safari 3.1 ~ Chris Pirillo”.’ message that pops-up when you mistakenly close a tab with edited content, and the very handy ‘grab a tab and make it a new browser window’ feature that make Safari my default browser.
Add a powerful free add-on like SafariStand with its cool (& very fast) History Flow to visually find a recently visited site and its Action menu for easy deletion of cookies (amongst other things) and the general joys of Mac OS 10.5 Leopard (which brings you Search in spotlight, Search in Google and Look up in dictionary functionality on every word on a webpage - yup, not in Firefox 2 or 3) and you have a webtool that’s hard to beat.

Conte Rules - March 19, 2008 @ 6:32 am

I will have to try out Safari 3.1 when I get home. I did review Safari 3.0.4 beta for Windows. I’ll post the link below.

I currently use the latest Firefox 2 as my default on all computers. Firefox 3 looks great and I’ve tested the 2nd and 4th beta and am liking it more and more. I’ll have to review Safari 3.1 later this week.

Safari 3.0.4 Review
http://conterules.blogspot.com.....ndows.html

demian - March 19, 2008 @ 6:43 am

Tried Safari a couple of times.
Password manager did not seem to work on all sites.
Grey skin is very boring.
No mouse gestures support (out of the box).

I’ll stick with Opera (like I did for past 7-8 years).
It never dissapoints.
(Except when I open 30 pages at once :-) )

Sure FireFox is neat but I only use it for 3-4 sites that insist on IE and for Flash debugging.

And ….this script
http://www.raymond.cc/blog/arc.....rd-fields/

is kinda hard to make work on Opera ’cause it posts right away when using Wand.
So script cannot read the password field, unless you’re really quick ;-)
Makes me feel safer …

DaMan - March 19, 2008 @ 9:34 am

I downloaded Safari last night to try it out. I love the simplicity and clean looking interface. It’s much faster more stable than IE7 and I love it. But I am having a very strange issue with it. Not to long after installing it my wireless mouse kept disconnecting from the receiver. I uninstalled safari and the issue went away. Then tried installing it again and it issue returned. I would love to use safari as my default browser if it wasn’t for my mouse disconnecting every few seconds.

Mactex - March 19, 2008 @ 10:14 am

I really like firefox, wasnt into safari too much. But after reading this I tried it, and it is fast!! really good. Im going to continue to use it, and who knows might become my favorite browser :D

DaMan - March 19, 2008 @ 10:34 am

Regarding my previous comment. After reading a little about my Logitech wireless mouse software, I found out that it doesn’t support safari. I guess this is were I go and get a corded mouse if means I will be able to use a more stable web browser.

Sangueffusor - March 19, 2008 @ 2:07 pm

I use Opera.

Safari does not support Windows 2000.

dabrace1984 - March 19, 2008 @ 5:21 pm

Safari 3.1 for Windows (possibly just Vista) doesn’t seem to put support the URL Path Navigation feature. Any one else have problems with this in Windows Vista?

krcm0209 [Kyle] - March 19, 2008 @ 9:18 pm

I just started using Safari, and can I say wow! It’s a lot more than I ever expected. I can’t believe that I ever survived with just Internet Explorer. I love all of the features that it has that other don’t. Plus, it’s backed with the feeling of security and stability you get when you work with Apple.
;-)

Goobimama - March 21, 2008 @ 3:17 pm

Safari 3.1 has really become a contender on the Windows platform. On the mac of course it is way ahead. But on Windows, uptil 3.1 it did have a few bugs to be ironed out and such.

1. Private Browsing: This is an awesome feature for when you don’t want people to be suspicious of your web surfing habits (and we all know clearing the history or resetting the browser is a dead giveaway!)

2. Font rendering: It’s soooo much better on Safari than firefox or any other browser for that matter.

3. The fact that once you hide the status bar, there ‘browser’ element is just kept to the bare minimum while your web page is given maximum coverage. On the Mac there isn’t even that fine border line.

4. The fact that you don’t have to go through countless preferences to use your browser. After all, isn’t it about web pages here?

5. Right click an unformatted html address in a web page and safari offers to open in new tab/window.

I would like to see that DOM inspector in the Windows version though. Really neat.

Goobimama - March 21, 2008 @ 3:20 pm

@debrace: The URL path nav is a Mac only feature. I think Chris should have done some proper research before just blurting out features that aren’t even available on the Windows side of things.

Superfly - March 21, 2008 @ 4:56 pm

I’m actually giving Safara 3.1 a one week trial run. I’ve heard MANY good things about it, and some are saying it’s becoming better than firefox. *gasp* I’ve been a long time firefox user, but there might be a switch in the near future! We’ll see, these tips are what prompted the trial run. ;) Thanks Chris.

OmniDragon - March 21, 2008 @ 6:02 pm

mmmmmyeah ……..Web Inspector is cool n all. But it doesn’t hold a candle to Firebug (in my opinion). And Firebug coupled with Web Developer makes for a nice combo ;)……..noscript, cookiesafe, adblock plus…ftw I like having that kind of control

However, Safari is still my fav due to its speed. Firefox just feels so heavy anymore. I tried to new beta but switched back to 2.0.0.12 due to incompatibility with some addons. I wonder what’s in store for the next stable release of Firefox : ) my old time favorite…..come back to me :(

bgeorge - March 21, 2008 @ 6:20 pm

I have been using Safari 3 on both my old pc and my new Macbook Pro and I had a great experience. The web pages looked cleaner and the fonts were rendered better. Safari also seemed to be compatible with about every site i visited with the exception if the compose Message window on Gmail. I will give Safari 3.1 and download and give it a try.

tompo51 - March 21, 2008 @ 6:33 pm

Great top 10! Safari is the fastest and cleanest browser by far! I have a Mac, Windows and a Linux Machine (Ubuntu) and Safari on the Mac and Windows is the fastest over FireFox and way faster than IE. Opera is pretty decent but I don’t care for it on any of the OS’s. If you haven’t given it a shot you don’t know what your missing. Yes it’s different but so something new when you get it. You’ll get used to it and in no time be making the same arguments to others.

LightAce - March 21, 2008 @ 7:13 pm

I’ve tried Safari, IE7, Firefox, and Opera. I flushed IE7 and Opera from my browsing options. I thought Safari was pretty good but as a windows user it really didn’t have the look that matches Windows Xp, but thats just personal taste. Another reason I started straying away from Safari was because Firefox had great addons such as Adblock Plus, FlashBlock, and WOT. However I still use both Safari and Firefox and they’re both working well on Windows and each have amazing things to offer.

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